from Plainridge Racecourse

Plainville, MA — Royalty For Life, the colt who cruised to victory in last August’s Hambletonian, returned to Plainridge Racecourse this weekend to prepare and train for the 2014 racing season.

Plainridge photo

Royalty For Life and trainer George Ducharme arrived at Plainridge Racecourse over the weekend.

Trainer George Ducharme said he was “thrilled to have the horse back home to prepare him for the start of his 4-year-old season which is just around the corner.”

“We are honored that Royalty For Life will be getting ready for his 2014 campaign here at Plainridge Racecourse,” said Chris McErlean, Vice President of Racing for Penn National Gaming, parent company of Plainridge Racecourse. “His string of victories last year are a remarkable testament to the potential that exists in the Massachusetts harness racing industry which is why we are so happy to have him back and also why we are so happy to be moving forward on our exciting plans here in Plainville.”

Just a week before the Massachusetts Gaming Commission awarded the Commonwealth’s sole Category Two expanded gaming license to Penn National’s Plainridge Park Casino project, Royalty For Life was named the 2013 3-year-old male Trotter of the Year by the United States Harness Writers Association.

The stallion, owned by Al Ross of Dartmouth, was born in Belchertown at the farm of breeder Raymond “Chip” Campbell and is trained by Norfolk resident George Ducharme in Plainville. After winning the Hambletonian last year, Royalty For Life also won the Canadian Trotting Classic, Canada’s premier harness racing event for sophomore trotters.

“Thanks to the MGC, Royalty For Life’s return to Plainridge Racecourse will be just one of many new good news stories that the future holds for harness racing here in the Commonwealth,” stated McErlean. “It’s been a long, cold and snowy winter but the racing industry in Massachusetts has brighter days ahead with a lot more victories, and so does Royalty For Life.”